Every student knows the dreaded sound of their alarm beeping, waking them up after what feels like mere minutes of sleep.
After managing to get up, they rush to get ready, head to school exhausted, sit in their classes, go to extracurricular activities, and come home to numerous hours of homework.
Because they’re so tired, they take especially long to complete their assignments, meaning they go to bed later than they wish. Only, the second their head hits the pillow, their alarm beeps again.
For many, this vicious cycle feels impossible to beat. All it takes is one night of staying up too late or simply getting poor sleep for this unhealthy routine to begin.
As more and more students speak out about this, medical professionals are taking notice.
Recently, the issue of adolescent sleep deprivation has grown so extreme that the American Academy of Pediatrics deemed it a public health epidemic.
As this seemingly unbreakable cycle repeats for yet another generation of students, one common question is being repeated:
What is really causing this lack of sleep?
In senior Dakota Risley’s experience, her sleep hours are determined by a variety of things in her life.
“Definitely sports, homework, and [my] job,” she said.
Dakota gets 6 to 7 hours of sleep per night, but will occasionally only get 5 if she has a tennis game, a test to study for, or an unusually heavy workload. These hours hardly come close to the recommended 8 to 10 hours a night for teenagers.
Dakota commonly feels exhausted in the mornings, and has noticed this impact other parts of her life.
“I never feel well rested. I feel like I need to go back to sleep, and it’s so hard getting back up. And because there’s literally no time to eat I end up skipping breakfast in the morning,” she said.
Dakota states that she would love to be asleep by 9 p.m., but recognizes that, with her current schedule, this is simply not possible.
“That’d be really ideal, but it’s not going to happen.”
This pattern of prioritizing assignments over rest is less extreme in younger students, but still noticeable.
Freshman Teddy Cronin blames her workload for keeping her up at night.
“Homework determines whether I stay up or not, for sure.”
For the most part, however, she has managed to balance her schoolwork with her sleep schedule.
“I try to get nine hours [each night]. I prioritize sleep a lot.”
Conversely, Dakota has found it challenging to balance her list of responsibilities.
“Sports are very demanding and they require all of your time and effort, so you have to accommodate your schedule around them. And then, as for homework, you can’t really dictate how much you get or the difficulty of it or how long it’s going to take you,” she said.
A frequent lack of sleep, commonly known as sleep deprivation or sleep debt, can impact focus throughout the day, a side effect that students often notice. What is harder to catch, however, is the physical harm that this deprivation can cause.
“Teenagers are still growing, and it’s during deep sleep when the pituitary gland actually releases the growth hormone. Sleep is when you physically grow,” said AP Psychology instructor Meghan Roarty. “One night of not getting sleep isn’t going to stunt your growth, but a prolonged lack of sleep can affect growth.”
Roarty also emphasized the variety of mental impacts that sleep deprivation can bring.
“Cognitively, it can interfere with concentration and focus. Sleep is where we consolidate memories so [sleep deprivation] can interfere with memory. And emotionally, people tend to suffer from depression and anxiety or irritability when they have a lack of sleep.”
Once a student enters an inadequate sleep schedule, it can be nearly impossible to get out.
Board Certified Sleep Specialist Jeffery Polito encourages his patients to make intentional decisions throughout the day in order to get better sleep each night.
“I remind people that quality sleep doesn’t just happen, it’s something we must protect,” Polito said.
“Disconnecting from screens, creating a calm nighttime routine, and honoring a consistent sleep schedule are some of the simplest yet most powerful ways to restore balance, focus, and overall well-being.”
Polito also warned that online activity can greatly impact sleep, especially if one is consuming media or working on a device shortly before going to sleep.
“In today’s world, we’re surrounded by constant digital stimulation that keeps our brains active long after the day should be done.”
For many students, limiting screen use before bed is not realistic. Their day ends the second their last assignment is completed, meaning they’re switching instantly from working to trying to fall asleep.
This shift does not always occur quickly in the brain, causing many students to lie awake at night, even if they are physically fatigued.
The cycle has been an unfortunate reality for generations upon generations of students, and is becoming increasingly normalized in our culture.
Students are taught that sacrificing nearly half of the sleep they are supposed to be getting is responsible if it means getting a higher grade in a class.
The ideal solution to this problem lies in schools across the country recognizing the extreme stress that their students are under and lessening their workload.
For many reasons, however, this is not realistic. Teachers cannot suddenly change their curriculum, and oftentimes, the entirety of students’ workloads are necessary for their education.
Instead of losing hope, students should focus on what they can control about their sleep schedule.
On the nights when early sleep is an option, they should take it. By following a night routine as consistently as possible, waking up at the same time every morning, and learning to prioritize their health over their grades, students can break the seemingly never-ending cycle of sleep deprivation.